Scottish Executive

Adult Literacy

Mr Frank McAveety (Glasgow Shettleston) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress is being made in raising levels of adult literacy.

Ms Wendy Alexander: I published the Adult Literacy Team’s report in July. It provides a comprehensive strategy for raising levels of adult literacy and numeracy in Scotland.

  Funding of £22.5 million between now and 2004 will enable an initial 80,000 people to be helped.

Agriculture

Elaine Smith (Coatbridge and Chryston) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has regarding the export of Scottish agricultural produce.

Ross Finnie: A Forward Strategy for Scottish Agriculture , which I published in June, outlined the need to improve the identification of markets at home and abroad for Scottish agricultural produce. In the awarding of grants for the processing and marketing of agricultural products, priority is given to businesses that seek to increase exports. The Scottish Executive will continue to support all sectors of the agri-food industry in developing plans to improve exports.

Agriculture

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the statement on page 52 of A Forward Strategy for Agriculture regarding encouragement and funding of a pilot project involving medical and nutritional experts to determine whether increased consumption of berries has a pronounced health advantage, how much funding it intends to commit to this project and when this funding will be approved and allocated.

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the statement on page 52 of A Forward Strategy for Agriculture regarding encouragement and funding of a pilot project involving medical and nutritional experts to determine whether increased consumption of berries has a pronounced health advantage, whether, given existing information on the health benefits of eating fruit and the World Health Organisation’s recommended minimum daily allowance of fruit and vegetables, this project will concentrate on using existing knowledge to co-ordinate the berry industry, academics and medical experts with the aim of persuading people to eat more berries.

Ross Finnie: Scottish ministers are currently considering revised proposals for a pilot project, submitted by the Scottish Berry Group in July. You and other interested members will be informed of the outcome in due course.

Agriculture

Fiona McLeod (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, in light of the expectation of the Scottish Environment Protection Agency that agricultural run-off will be the most important cause of river pollution over the next decade, why bathing waters are not referred to in A Forward Strategy for Scottish Agriculture .

Ross Finnie: A Forward Strategy for Scottish Agriculture specifically mentions the significant role farmers have in tackling water pollution. Reducing potential threats to bathing waters is merely one manifestation of this role. Our strategy commits us to taking a joined-up approach to agriculture and environment policy, to ensuring better advice and guidance to farmers, and to identifying solutions which are good for the environment and good for business. The approach we are developing is not limited to the single issue of bathing waters but is valid and applicable across the whole range of issues where agriculture affects the environment.

Crime

Maureen Macmillan (Highlands and Islands) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress is being made with the introduction of the Criminal Justice Bill.

Iain Gray: We intend to introduce a Criminal Justice Bill in early 2002. It will introduce new arrangements for the treatment of serious violent and sexual offenders, as set out in our White Paper of June. It will also introduce other measures, which will be outlined in a further White Paper to be published shortly.

Crime Prevention

Brian Adam (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether grants have been awarded to local authorities for feasibility studies on the use of mobile CCTV cameras in crime and vandalism hotspots.

Iain Gray: No grants have been made specifically for such feasibility studies. However, Perth and Kinross Council, and Dundee City Council, were awarded grants of £30,000 and £33,000 respectively in 2000-01 for mobile CCTV units through the "Make Our Communities Safer" CCTV Challenge Competition. The conditions of grant attached to each award require the councils to evaluate the effectiveness of the units within 18 months of becoming operational, and to submit the evaluations to the Scottish Executive.

Culture

Michael Russell (South of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether there was any change between 1999-2000 and 2000-01 in the number of pensioners visiting galleries and museums and, if so, what this change was.

Allan Wilson: The information requested is not held centrally.

Dental Health

Dr Richard Simpson (Ochil) (Lab): To ask the First Minister what developments the Scottish Executive is initiating in respect of dental services.

Mr Jim Wallace: A number of the recommendations, outlined in the Action Plan for Dental Services in Scotland which was published in August 2000, have been implemented and work continues to address the others.

  I am pleased to say that this morning the Health Minister announced that an additional £3.8 million was being made available to improve NHS dental surgeries.

Drug Courts

Helen Eadie (Dunfermline East) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress has been made on its pilot programme of Drug Courts.

Iain Gray: The Glasgow Drug Court sat for the first time on Monday 12 November. This opens the way for a second stage pilot and so I was pleased to announce on Monday that a Drug Court will be established in Fife. The plans are for it to be in operation by summer 2002.

Drug Misuse

Johann Lamont (Glasgow Pollok) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive when the report of the study into the national and local prevalence of problem drug misuse in Scotland will be published.

Iain Gray: The report, funded by the Scottish Executive, and undertaken by the Centre for Drug Misuse Research at the University of Glasgow in conjunction with the Scottish Centre for Infection and Environmental Health, is being published today. Copies of the report have been made available to the Parliament’s Reference Centre and a copy can be found on the national drugs website at http://www.drugmisuse.isdscotland.org/publications/abstracts/prevalence.htm .

Education

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to review the Excellence Fund and Action Plan Funding initiatives.

Mr Jack McConnell: The scope and operation of the Excellence Fund, which includes the programme for Education Action Plans, is currently under review by a working group comprising officials of the Scottish Executive Education Department and representatives of the Association of Directors of Education in Scotland who are participating also on behalf of the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities. I expect the group to make recommendations to me shortly.

Education

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how much each local authority has received from the (a) Excellence Fund, (b) New Community Schools and (c) Action Plan Funding initiatives in each year since they were established.

Mr Jack McConnell: The New Community Schools and Education Action Plan Programmes are part of the Excellence Fund. Table 1 provides details of the total amounts allocated to authorities under the Excellence Fund in each year since it was established. Tables 2 and 3 provide separately details of the amounts for the New Community Schools and Education Action Plan Programmes which are included in the total Excellence Fund figures in Table 1.

  Table 1

  


Local Authorities 


Excellence Fund
  1999-2000
  (£) 


Excellence Fund
  2000-01
  (£) 


Excellence Fund
  2001-02
  (£) 




Aberdeen City 
  

4,202,554 
  

6,122,317 
  

6,458,146 
  



Aberdeenshire 
  

4,429,347 
  

5,947,284 
  

7,091,568 
  



Angus 
  

2,080,356 
  

2,825,652 
  

3,198,425 
  



Argyll & Bute 
  

1,736,190 
  

2,188,064 
  

2,596,670 
  



Clackmannanshire 
  

 1,039,818 
  

1,378,012 
  

1,878,082 
  



Dumfries & Galloway 
  

2,961,700 
  

3,724,975 
  

4,390,273 
  



Dundee City 
  

3,421,389 
  

4,182,149 
  

4,768,164 
  



East Ayrshire 
  

2,593,246 
  

4,138,732 
  

4,570,419 
  



East Dunbartonshire 
  

3,157,980 
  

3,976,632 
  

4,578,824 
  



East Lothian 
  

1,900,662 
  

2,895,842 
  

3,753,653 
  



East Renfrewshire 
  

2,369,460 
  

4,288,532 
  

4,970,900 
  



Edinburgh, City of 
  

7,948,212 
  

10,217,718 
  

12,332,803 
  



Eilean Siar 
  

 851,449 
  

 962,902 
  

 1,192,817 
  



Falkirk 
  

3,146,833 
  

4,070,162 
  

4,838,547 
  



Fife 
  

6,386,327 
  

8,367,612 
  

10,063,096 
  



Glasgow City 
  

11,323,980 
  

15,673,498 
  

19,173,601 
  



Highland 
  

4,104,062 
  

5,510,847 
  

6,173,780 
  



Inverclyde 
  

2,054,653 
  

2,583,542 
  

3,228,338 
  



Midlothian 
  

1,752,283 
  

2,324,840 
  

2,797,545 
  



Moray 
  

1,838,528 
  

2,338,268 
  

2,761,125 
  



North Ayrshire 
  

2,855,538 
  

4,026,784 
  

4,563,227 
  



North Lanarkshire 
  

6,813,193 
  

9,016,912 
  

10,716,688 
  



Orkney Islands 
  

 460,782 
  

 623,242 
  

 755,544 
  



Perth & Kinross 
  

2,650,232 
  

3,461,325 
  

4,460,906 
  



Renfrewshire 
  

3,893,785 
  

5,086,925 
  

6,032,028 
  



Scottish Borders 
  

1,993,669 
  

2,622,652 
  

3,118,423 
  



Shetland Islands 
  

 596,422 
  

 688,251 
  

 901,681 
  



South Ayrshire 
  

2,528,722 
  

3,398,154 
  

3,776,472 
  



South Lanarkshire 
  

5,770,876 
  

7,848,508 
  

9,713,120 
  



Stirling 
  

1,667,003 
  

2,277,432 
  

2,932,824 
  



West Dunbartonshire 
  

2,588,362 
  

3,266,336 
  

3,695,234 
  



West Lothian 
  

3,713,757 
  

5,146,221 
  

5,957,413 
  



Total 
  

104,831,370 
  

141,180,322 
  

167,440,336 
  



  Note:

  Includes figures for New Community Schools and Education Action Plan Programmes shown separately in Tables 2 and 3.

  Table 2

  


Local Authorities 


New Community Schools
  1999-2000
  (£) 


New Community Schools
  2000-01
  (£) 


New Community Schools
  2001-02
  (£) 




Aberdeen City 
  

200,000 
  

400,000 
  

400,000 
  



Aberdeenshire 
  

200,000 
  

300,000 
  

400,000 
  



Angus 
  

200,000 
  

200,000 
  

400,000 
  



Argyll & Bute 
  

200,000 
  

200,000 
  

400,000 
  



Clackmannanshire 
  

200,000 
  

200,000 
  

400,000 
  



Dumfries & Galloway 
  

200,000 
  

200,000 
  

400,000 
  



Dundee City 
  

200,000 
  

200,000 
  

400,000 
  



East Ayrshire 
  

200,000 
  

200,000 
  

400,000 
  



East Dunbartonshire 
  

200,000 
  

200,000 
  

400,000 
  



East Lothian 
  

200,000 
  

400,000 
  

400,000 
  



East Renfrewshire 
  

200,000 
  

300,000 
  

400,000 
  



Edinburgh, City of 
  

200,000 
  

200,000 
  

400,000 
  



Eilean Siar 
  

200,000 
  

200,000 
  

400,000 
  



Falkirk 
  

200,000 
  

400,000 
  

400,000 
  



Fife 
  

200,000 
  

200,000 
  

400,000 
  



Glasgow City 
  

200,000 
  

200,000 
  

400,000 
  



Highland 
  

200,000 
  

400,000 
  

400,000 
  



Inverclyde 
  

200,000 
  

200,000 
  

400,000 
  



Midlothian 
  

200,000 
  

300,000 
  

400,000 
  



Moray 
  

200,000 
  

200,000 
  

400,000 
  



North Ayrshire 
  

200,000 
  

400,000 
  

400,000 
  



North Lanarkshire 
  

200,000 
  

300,000 
  

400,000 
  



Orkney Islands 
  

Nil 
  

100,000 
  

200,000 
  



Perth & Kinross 
  

200,000 
  

300,000 
  

400,000 
  



Renfrewshire 
  

200,000 
  

300,000 
  

400,000 
  



Scottish Borders 
  

200,000 
  

300,000 
  

400,000 
  



Shetland Islands 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  

200,000 
  



South Ayrshire 
  

200,000 
  

400,000 
  

400,000 
  



South Lanarkshire 
  

200,000 
  

400,000 
  

400,000 
  



Stirling 
  

200,000 
  

300,000 
  

400,000 
  



West Dunbartonshire 
  

200,000 
  

300,000 
  

400,000 
  



West Lothian 
  

200,000 
  

200,000 
  

400,000 
  



Total 
  

6,000,000 
  

8,400,000 
  

12,400,000 
  



  Note:

  These figures are included in the total Excellence Fund figures shown in Table 1.

  Table 3

  


Local Authorities 


Education Action Plans
  1999-2000 


Education Action Plans
  2000-01 


Education Action Plans
  2001-02 




Aberdeen City 
  

500,000 
  

500,000 
  

500,000 
  



Aberdeenshire 
  

200,000 
  

200,000 
  

200,000 
  



Angus 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  



Argyll & Bute 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  



Clackmannanshire 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  



Dumfries & Galloway 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  



Dundee City 
  

500,000 
  

500,000 
  

500,000 
  



East Ayrshire 
  

100,000 
  

100,000 
  

100,000 
  



East Dunbartonshire 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  



East Lothian 
  

200,000 
  

200,000 
  

200,000 
  



East Renfrewshire 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  



Edinburgh, City of 
  

500,000 
  

500,000 
  

500,000 
  



Eilean Siar 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  



Falkirk 
  

100,000 
  

100,000 
  

100,000 
  



Fife 
  

200,000 
  

200,000 
  

200,000 
  



Glasgow City 
  

800,000 
  

800,000 
  

800,000 
  



Highland 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  



Inverclyde 
  

200,000 
  

200,000 
  

200,000 
  



Midlothian 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  



Moray 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  



North Ayrshire 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  



North Lanarkshire 
  

300,000 
  

300,000 
  

300,000 
  



Orkney Islands 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  



Perth & Kinross 
  

200,000 
  

200,000 
  

200,000 
  



Renfrewshire 
  

100,000 
  

100,000 
  

100,000 
  



Scottish Borders 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  



Shetland Islands 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  



South Ayrshire 
  

100,000 
  

100,000 
  

100,000 
  



South Lanarkshire 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  



Stirling 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  

Nil 
  



West Dunbartonshire 
  

500,000 
  

500,000 
  

500,000 
  



West Lothian 
  

200,000 
  

200,000 
  

200,000 
  



Total 
  

4,700,000 
  

4,700,000 
  

4,700,000 
  



  Note: These figures are included in the total Excellence Fund figures shown in Table 1.

Education

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how much will be made available to each local authority from the (a) Excellence Fund, (b) New Community Schools and (c) Action Plan Funding initiatives in each of the next four years.

Mr Jack McConnell: As indicated in my answer to question S1W-19611, the scope and operation of the Excellence Fund is currently under review. The review includes consideration of on-going commitments on local authorities arising from the fund. I shall announce the outcome of the review as soon as possible.

Education

Brian Fitzpatrick (Strathkelvin & Bearsden) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what trends have been identified in average salaries for male and female academic staff in higher education establishments.

Ms Wendy Alexander: This information is not held centrally.

  Staff pay is an issue for institutions to decide in collaboration with staff and their representatives.

Enterprise

David Mundell (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it intends to take in response to the report Destination Retail: A Survey of Young People’s Attitudes Towards a Career in Retailing  by the Retail E-Commerce Task Force of the Foresight Directorate of the Department of Trade and Industry.

David Mundell (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it intends to take in response to the report @ Your Home: New Market for Customer Service and Delivery by the Retail Logistics Task Force of the Foresight Directorate of the Department of Trade and Industry.

David Mundell (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it has taken or intends to take in conjunction with the retail industry in carrying forward the recommendations contained in the report The Retail Revolution: from a Nation of Shopkeepers to a World of Opportunities by the Retail and Consumer Services Panel of the Foresight Directorate of the Department of Trade and Industry.

Ms Wendy Alexander: The Scottish Foresight Forum, co-ordinated by the Executive, oversees the implementation of the Foresight programme in Scotland. The forum is happy to work with all key stakeholders to establish how to take forward the recommendations arising from this report.

Enterprise

David Mundell (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what initiatives it is supporting or is intending supporting to promote Glasgow’s status as the UK’s second retail city.

Ms Wendy Alexander: The Scottish Executive, through its Enterprise Network, is committed to delivering sustainable local economic development. Specifically in relation to Glasgow and the retail sector, the local enterprise company is providing support in a number of ways: infrastructure improvements, partnership working with the private sector, marketing and promotion in partnership with the City Council and Greater Glasgow and Clyde Valley Tourist Board.

Environment

Fiona McLeod (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what measures it took to mark World Standards Day on 14 October, particularly in the context of this year’s focus on "The Environment and Standards: closer together".

Ms Wendy Alexander: None. Such events tend to be marked by standards bodies rather than governments.

Environment

Fiona McLeod (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether local authorities are on target to meet the requirements of EC Regulation 2037/2000, regarding the removal of ozone depleting substances prior to the dismantling or disposal of domestic refrigerators and freezers.

Rhona Brankin: The requirements referred to come into effect on 1 January 2002. Local authorities, or their agents, should already be able to remove ozone-depleting substances from refridgerator cooling circuits. However, they will not be able to meet the deadline for removing those trapped in insulation foams because the UK currently does not have the technology for treating such foams in an environmentally-secure manner. It is likely that discarded refrigerators will have to be stored or exported for treatment until Scottish facilities are available and the Executive is currently considering local authority funding issues.

Environment

Fiona McLeod (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to make funds available to help local authorities to comply with EC Regulation 2037/2000 with regard to the removal of ozone depleting substances prior to the dismantling or disposal of domestic refrigerators and freezers.

Rhona Brankin: The requirement to remove free ozone-depleting substances from domestic fridges and freezers (e.g. those in the cooling circuit) is an existing duty which local authorities already have to discharge. The requirement to remove trapped ozone-depleting substances (e.g. those in insulation foams) is a new one and funding issues are currently under consideration.

Fisheries

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many qualifying offers for entry into the ranking list have been received under the fishing vessels decommissioning scheme.

Rhona Brankin: Subject to checks, which have still to be made on some applications, 197 eligible applications for grant under the Scottish scheme have been received.

Fisheries

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the value is of (a) the total number of applications made and (b) the qualifying offers for entry into the ranking list received under the fishing vessels decommissioning scheme.

Rhona Brankin: The value of the total number of grant bids received under the scheme is just over £55 million. Subject to outstanding checks on information provided in application forms, the value of bids considered eligible, and to be included in the evaluation and ranking process, is a little under £50 million.

Fisheries

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many people are employed on fishing vessels whose owners have made applications under the fishing vessels decommissioning scheme, broken down by port of registration.

Rhona Brankin: The Executive does not hold details of fishermen employed on individual fishing vessels.

Fisheries

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the distribution is of fishing vessels whose owners have made applications under the fishing vessels decommissioning scheme, broken down by port of registration.

Rhona Brankin: The information requested is as follows:

  


Aberdeen 
  

4 
  

Inverness 
  

23 
  



Arbroath 
  

3 
  

Kirkwall 
  

5 
  



Ayr 
  

1 
  

Kirkcaldy 
  

6 
  



Ballantrae 
  

9 
  

Leith 
  

15 
  



Buckie 
  

12 
  

Lerwick 
  

13 
  



Banff 
  

22 
  

Newry 
  

3 
  



Berwick-on-Tweed 
  

1 
  

Oban 
  

6 
  



Campbeltown 
  

6 
  

Peterhead 
  

32 
  



Castlebay 
  

1 
  

Rothesay 
  

1 
  



Dumfries 
  

2 
  

Stornoway 
  

11 
  



Exeter 
  

1 
  

Tarbert 
  

3 
  



Fleetwood 
  

1 
  

Ullapool 
  

1 
  



Fraserburgh 
  

32 
  

Wick 
  

1 
  



Hull 
  

1 
  

Whitby 
  

1 
  



Hartlepool 
  

1

Food Safety

Mr Lloyd Quinan (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will consider setting up a research group to look into any effects of using pesticides in the food chain.

Ross Finnie: It is the responsibility of the Advisory Committee on Pesticides to ensure that all pesticides are safe to those who use them, to consumers of the treated produce and to the environment. In addition, the Pesticide Residues Committee (PRC) monitors the safety of food on sale. Its function is to plan a surveillance programme for pesticide residues in the UK food supply and to evaluate the results. Both committees are independent of Government.

  The PRC results are published on a regular basis. A copy of the latest Annual Report for year 2000 has been placed in the Parliament’s Reference Centre (Bib. number 17241).

Food Safety

Mr Lloyd Quinan (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will consider commissioning any studies into the use of food additives and any possible side effects caused by their consumption.

Malcolm Chisholm: On matters of food safety and standards, the Scottish Executive is advised by the Food Standards Agency. Additives are only permitted if independent experts consider them to be safe and their use is justified. The Food Standards Agency actively checks on the amounts of individual food additives eaten by UK consumers, to ensure that they remain within safe limits. The details of this work is published and if any problems are found, appropriate action is taken to safeguard public health. Information about the Food Standards Agency’s research on additives, including work to measure additive intake, is available in the Annual Review of Current Research Projects by the Working Party on Food Additives 2000, published on the agency’s website.

Foot-and-Mouth Disease

Mr David Davidson (North-East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how much has been granted in relief through the rates relief scheme for businesses affected by the foot-and-mouth disease outbreak. since the first reported case of the disease.

Angus MacKay: The latest information available from councils indicates that £2,408,417 had been granted in rates relief for businesses affected by foot-and-mouth disease at 31 August 2001. It is currently estimated that around £4.1 million will be granted in total to affected businesses by the end of the year.

Health

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to expand the role of the physiotherapist service.

Susan Deacon: Physiotherapists are already expanding and developing their roles in response to the modernisation of NHSScotland, and the executive supports and encourages them to continue to do so.

  The Scottish Executive Health Department is currently developing a Strategy for Professions Allied to Medicine including Physiotherapists, which is looking at a number of key issues such as recruitment and retention, education and training.

Health

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to ensure adequate levels of recruitment of physiotherapists.

Susan Deacon: Physiotherapists make an important contribution to healthcare in NHSScotland and their numbers have increased by 7% over the last four years.

  The Scottish Executive Health Department is currently developing a Strategy for Professions Allied to Medicine including physiotherapists, which is looking at a number of key issues such as recruitment and retention, education and training.

Health

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether any research has been done into the level of savings to be achieved in the health and community care budget by effective use of physiotherapy services.

Susan Deacon: No formal research has been undertaken. The Scottish Health Plan, Our National Health: A plan for action, a plan for change , states that improving the way the NHS responds to the needs of patients is a key priority for every part of the NHS. This includes making the best use of the skills of all members of the health care team, including physiotherapists and challenging traditional ways of working to improve the speed, responsiveness and quality of care. This work is already under way.

Health

Brian Adam (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to increase the number of supernumary Grade A clinical physicist training posts.

Susan Deacon: There is no change to the number of Grade A funded medical physics training posts funded for the 2001-02 academic year.

Health

Mr Lloyd Quinan (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what information it has on any research that has been carried out into myalgic encephalomyelitis, stating in what year and by whom any such research was carried out and where any report of the findings may be accessed..

Susan Deacon: Information on non-commercial health related research carried out in the last seven years is available from the National Research Register, a copy of which is in the Parliament’s Reference Centre (Bib. number 17404). Policy on accessibility of research reports is a matter for individual research funders.

Health

Mr Lloyd Quinan (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many people have been diagnosed with myalgic encephalomyelitis since 1995 broken down by health board area, year and gender.

Malcolm Chisholm: The information requested is not available centrally. However, estimated all-Scotland figures for patients seen by general practitioners for myalgic encephalomyelitis, based on a sample of Scottish general practices participating in the Continuous Morbidity Recording System for the years from 1999, are given in the table. Due to differences in code descriptors it is not possible to provide information for myalgic encephalomyelitis prior to 1999.

  


Estimated number of patients seen by GPs 
  for Myalgic Encephalomyelitis 
  



Year 
  

January-December 
  

January-July 
  



1999 
  

5,800 
  

- 
  



2000 
  

8,000 
  

- 
  



2001 
  

- 
  

5,400

Health

Mr Lloyd Quinan (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what medical breakthroughs have been made in the treatment of myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME) in Scotland.

Malcolm Chisholm: The Executive is not aware of any recent significant advances in the treatment of ME in Scotland. The forthcoming report of the Chief Medical Officer’s Working Group in England is expected to produce good practice guidelines on the treatment of people with ME.

Higher Education

Mr David Davidson (North-East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has received any representations from universities regarding funding deficits.

Ms Wendy Alexander: The Scottish Executive has not received any formal representation from Scottish universities regarding specific funding deficits. The Scottish Higher Education Funding Council is responsible for monitoring the financial health of the higher education institutions it funds in Scotland.

Higher Education

Brian Fitzpatrick (Strathkelvin & Bearsden) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what steps are being taken to ensure equal pay for work of equal value by academic staff in higher education establishments.

Ms Wendy Alexander: Academic pay is a matter for institutions to decide in conjunction with employees and their representatives. My guidance letter to the sector in November last year indicated that "staff are the key resource of universities and colleges and we must continually strive to improve people management, staff development and succession planning."

  In addition, in March 2001, the Scottish Executive launched the "Close the Gap" initiative with a range of partners including The Equal Opportunities Commission, Scottish Enterprise and STUC. This initiative is a bid to raise awareness of the gap between men and women’s pay in all areas of enterprise and the economy and to encourage action to close it.

Higher Education

Brian Fitzpatrick (Strathkelvin & Bearsden) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what information it holds on the average full-time salary for (a) female and (b) male academic staff at (i) the University of Aberdeen, (ii) the University of Glasgow, (iii) the University of St Andrews, (iv) the University of Edinburgh, (v) the University of Dundee, (vi) Glasgow Caledonian University and (vii) the Glasgow School of Art.

Ms Wendy Alexander: This information is not held centrally.

  Staff pay is an issue for institutions to decide in collaboration with staff and their representatives.

Housing

Ms Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what funds it has given to the Glasgow Housing Association or to any other bodies for publicising the proposed transfer of the Glasgow City Council housing stock.

Ms Margaret Curran: In 2000-01 the Glasgow Housing Association and Glasgow City Council spent a total of £2.7 million on communication and tenant consultation costs. A further £2.3 million has been earmarked for these costs in the current year.

Housing

Dennis Canavan (Falkirk West): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to introduce legislation to allow long-lease tenants of commercial properties to terminate or buy their way out of such leases, or have the terms of the lease reviewed by an independent body, before the expiry of the lease period, particularly in cases where the property concerned is lying empty or unused.

Iain Gray: The Executive has no plans to introduce legislation in this area. Scots commercial law favours a freedom of contract approach in which commercial tenants and landlords can, with professional advice, tailor a lease to suit their own circumstances. Clauses, including early termination or buy-out clauses, can be included in a lease at the agreement of both parties. The present freedom of contract approach has worked satisfactorily for a long time.

  It is always open to the parties to a lease to negotiate an agreement subsequent to the lease, allowing early termination.

Justice

Lord James Douglas-Hamilton (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the reasons are for delay in appointing a new Lord President to the Court of Session and a new Lord Justice General.

Iain Gray: On Tuesday 13 November, the appointment was announced of the Rt Hon Lord Cullen who succeeds Lord Rodger as Lord President of the Court of Session and Lord Justice General. The Prime Minister made the final recommendation to Her Majesty the Queen after consulting the First Minister who nominated Lord Cullen. Scottish ministers warmly welcome the appointment of Lord Cullen and that of Lord Gill who succeeds Lord Cullen in the office of Lord Justice Clerk. Consultations about these appointments could not begin until after the announcement of Lord Rodger’s appointment as a Lord of Appeal and that did not happen until 11 September.

Justice

Brian Fitzpatrick (Strathkelvin & Bearsden) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what progress is being made with taking forward Criminal Justice Accommodation Services: A Review and Consultation Paper .

Iain Gray: Forty - nine   responses were made to the consultation exercise which ended on 30 September, including a number received after this date. These are being analysed at present and I hope to announce the outcome of the review early in the New Year.

Land Reform (Scotland) Bill

Lord James Douglas-Hamilton (Lothians) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to refer the Land Reform (Scotland) Bill to the Scottish Law Commission for its views.

Iain Gray: The Scottish Law Commission has already expressed its views on the draft Land Reform (Scotland) Bill during the extended consultation period for the draft Bill and Draft Scottish Outdoor Access Code earlier this year.

  Copies of the commission’s response (number 2833), along with more than 3,500 other responses received, is available at the Parliament’s Reference Centre (Bib. number 17255) and at the Executive’s library at Saughton House, Broomhouse Drive, Edinburgh.

Livestock

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will detail any measures it is considering in relation to the traceability of sheep.

Ross Finnie: Existing sheep identification and traceability requirements are set out in the Sheep and Goats Identification (Scotland) Regulations 2000. With the relaxation of movement arrangements from 1 September, including the opening of markets, a number of measures were introduced for disease control purposes, including the requirement for individual identification of sheep and for the recording of movements.

  Initially the arrangements from 1 September were restricted to one movement, including via a market, plus a further move direct to slaughter. The disease situation is being closely monitored and relaxations are made when it is considered safe to do so. As from 1 November a second movement of sheep has been permitted and the requirement for individual identification of sheep going to slaughter has been removed.

  Currently consideration is being given to the identification and traceability arrangements for the new lamb crop.

Livestock

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will detail any consultation it has had with the livestock auction industry in relation to the traceability of sheep.

Ross Finnie: The livestock auction industry, as with other key industry sectors, have been represented at the regular FMD Stakeholder Meetings with Scottish Executive Environment and Rural Affairs Department Officials, set up to discuss foot-and-mouth disease related measures – including sheep traceability issues. Additional meetings have also been held with representatives of the livestock auction industry to discuss issues of specific interest. They will continue to be consulted on future arrangements.

Livestock

Stewart Stevenson (Banff and Buchan) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what importance it attaches to traceability with regard to the prevention of outbreaks of contagious disease in animals.

Ross Finnie: Effective traceability is important in disease control terms, as it enables the speedy tracing of animals that could have been the source of infection or which have been in contact with the disease, thereby reducing the spread of disease by allowing control measures to be implemented swiftly. It does not in itself prevent outbreaks of disease.

Local Government

Iain Smith (North-East Fife) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive how its proposals to grant local authorities a power of well-being will differ from granting local authorities a power of general competence.

Peter Peacock: We believe the term well-being better describes the power we envisage which will be a general power to assist councils in promoting the well-being of their area.

Local Government

Mr Keith Harding (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to reduce the number of local authorities.

Peter Peacock: The next statutory review of local authority boundaries is scheduled to take place between 2004 and 2008.

Local Government Finance

George Lyon (Argyll and Bute) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will provide details of every individual allocation of money it has made to Argyll and Bute Council in this financial year and for what purpose each such allocation was made.

Angus MacKay: Allocations made to date are listed in the table. However, further allocations are likely to be made in this financial year.

  


Purpose 


Amount Allocated
  (£ million) 




Aggregate External Finance 
  

121.880 
  



Capital Allocation 
  

12.463 
  



Better Neighbourhood Services Fund 
  

0.600 
  



Modernising Government Fund 
  

0.416 
  



Public Transport Fund 
  

1.750 
  



Strategic Waste Fund 
  

1.102 
  



Domestic Abuse Development Fund 
  

0.030 
  



Community Safer Projects 
  

0.008 
  



Offender Services 
  

0.446 
  



Rail Services (paid directly to Strathclyde Passenger Transport 
  Executive) 
  

0.890 
  



Rough Sleepers Initiative 
  

0.114 
  



Funding to assist with costs of producing homelessness 
  strategy 
  

0.056 
  



Housing Stock Transfer feasibility study 
  

0.050 
  



Warm Deal and Central Heating Initiative 
  

0.235 
  



Setting up of Supporting People programme 
  

0.034 
  



Housing Revenue Account Allocation 
  

1.607 
  



Hostels Grant 
  

0.135 
  



Local Housing Strategy preparation 
  

0.010 
  



Empty Housing Initiative 
  

0.175 
  



Core Social Inclusion Partnership Funding 
  

0.369 
  



Drugs Misuse Funding 
  

0.033 
  



Community Reps Funding 
  

0.060 
  



Kickstart Funding 
  

0.025 
  



Changing Children’s Services Fund 
  

0.057 
  



Pre-School Grant 
  

2.432 
  



Early investigation into possible school Public Private 
  partnership 
  

0.200 
  



Additional financial resources for schools 
  

0.576 
  



Additional resources to provide facilities, equipment & 
  material to improve educational attainment of looked after 
  children 
  

0.170 
  



Infrastructure and Training Action Plan 
  

0.068 
  



Provision of 2 Diploma in Social Work placements 
  

0.001 
  



Total 
  

145.992

NHS Trusts

Tommy Sheridan (Glasgow) (SSP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has full confidence in the board of the North Glasgow University Hospitals NHS Trust.

Susan Deacon: I am keen that lessons are learned from a number of staffing, investment and operational problems experienced by the Trust since it was established in April 1999. On 7 November, I asked the Chief Executive of Greater Glasgow NHS Board to carry out a review of the North Glasgow Trust’s performance over that period. The review will be used to inform long-term plans for the development of acute services in Greater Glasgow.

Non-Departmental Public Bodies

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it maintains a register of all people serving on non-departmental public bodies and, if not, whether it has any plans to start such a register.

Angus MacKay: The Executive’s Public Appointments Unit maintains a register of all people serving on non-departmental public bodies. Full details are also available on the Executive’s website at www.scotland.gov.uk/government/publicappoint .

Non-Domestic Rates

Mr David Davidson (North-East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what (a) revenues it received from non-domestic rates in each of the years from 1996-97 to 2000-01 and (b) forecasts it has made of the revenues from such rates in each of the years (i) 2001-02, (ii) 2002-03 and (iii) 2003-04.

Angus MacKay: The amounts of non-domestic rates collected by councils on behalf of the Scottish Executive for the years 1996-97 to 2000-01 are shown in the following table:

  


Year 


£ million 




1996-97 
  

1,332.1 
  



1997-98 
  

1,327.2 
  



1998-99 
  

1,435.9 
  



1999-2000 
  

1,496.6 
  



2000-011


1,541.0 
  



  Note:

  1. Figures for 2000-01 are estimates based on latest information available.

  The assumptions about yield that have been used to forecast revenue from non-domestic rates for each of the years 2001-02, 2002-03 and 2003-04 are £1,569 million, £1,577 million and £1,595 million respectively, as published in the Annual Expenditure Report 2001 – The Scottish Budget.

Non-Domestic Rates

Mr David Davidson (North-East Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive how many appeals against non-domestic rates assessments are currently outstanding and on what grounds they were lodged.

Angus MacKay: As at 30 June 2001 (the latest information available), there were 51,610 non-domestic properties with appeals arising from the 2000 Revaluation outstanding. The Scottish Executive holds no information on the grounds on which these appeals were lodged with the Assessors. Information is not held centrally on outstanding rolling roll appeals (appeals arising from a change in occupier, tenant or owner or due to a material change in circumstances), or appeals not yet settled following earlier revaluations. The Scottish Assessors advise that to date 5,565 appeals have been lodged as a consequence of the foot-and-mouth disease outbreak.

Nursing

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-18498 by Susan Deacon on 9 October 2001, how many Staff Side Chairs of the Area Partnership Forums of the 15 new NHS Boards are members of the Royal College of Nursing.

Susan Deacon: Of the 13 Staff Side Chairs of Area Partnership Forums who have so far been appointed to the 15 new NHS Boards, three are currently members of the Royal College of Nursing.

Planning

Mr Keith Harding (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has received any representations from organisations or residents of Fife regarding its consultation document Review of Strategic Planning .

Lewis Macdonald: Yes. We have received just over 150 responses from Fife on the proposals in the consultation paper Review of Strategic Planning .

  All letters are available for viewing in the Parliament’s Reference Centre.

Planning

Des McNulty (Clydebank and Milngavie) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to improve standards of urban design.

Lewis Macdonald: I shall be launching the Executive's policy statement Designing Places  tomorrow.

Procurator Fiscal Service

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will re-consider its decision that the local Procurator Fiscal carry out a re-investigation into the death of Neil Gillies on 24 December 1999, and instruct that the investigation be carried out by a Procurator Fiscal from another area.

Neil Davidson QC: Decisions as to the investigation of deaths are taken independently by the Lord Advocate. It is for the Lord Advocate to determine which of his officials carries out an investigation.

Rail Industry

Andrew Wilson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what representations it has received regarding the range of powers that the Scottish ministers have in relation to the rail industry.

Sarah Boyack: I receive representations from a wide range of interests about this and other issues relating to the rail industry in Scotland.

Rape

Mr Gil Paterson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many rapes were reported in the last year for which figures are available and how many convictions were obtained, broken down by police area and division.

Iain Gray: The available information, on the crimes of rape which were recorded by the police and on persons with a charge proved in court where the main offence was rape, is given in the following tables:

  Crimes of rape recorded by the police and persons with a charge proved in court1

  


Police force area 


Number of offences recorded by the police, 
  1999 


Number of persons with a charge proved,19992



Number of offences recorded by the police, 
  2000 




Scotland 
  

591 
  

27 
  

562 
  



Central 
  

5 
  

2 
  

14 
  



Dumfries & Galloway 
  

40 
  

1 
  

19 
  



Fife 
  

32 
  

2 
  

54 
  



Grampian 
  

82 
  

5 
  

60 
  



Lothian & Borders 
  

111 
  

8 
  

119 
  



Northern 
  

36 
  

1 
  

15 
  



Strathclyde 
  

218 
  

8 
  

219 
  



Tayside 
  

67 
  

0 
  

62 
  



  Notes:

  1. The statistics dealing with recorded crime and court proceedings are not directly comparable as a person may be proceeded against for more than one crime involving more than one victim, or a crime may be recorded in one year and proceedings taken in a subsequent year.

  2. Where rape was the main offence.

  Crimes of rape recorded by the police

  


Council area 


Number of offences recorded by the police, 
  1999 


Number of offences recorded by the police, 
  2000 




Scotland 
  

591 
  

562 
  



Aberdeen City 
  

53 
  

27 
  



Aberdeenshire 
  

21 
  

23 
  



Angus 


23 
  

10 
  



Argyll & Bute 
  

7 
  

8 
  



Clackmannanshire 
  

0 
  

5 
  



Dumfries & Galloway 
  

40 
  

19 
  



Dundee City 


35 
  

32 
  



East Ayrshire 
  

14 
  

8 
  



East Dunbartonshire 
  

7 
  

3 
  



East Lothian 
  

7 
  

11 
  



East Renfrewshire 
  

4 
  

6 
  



Edinburgh, City of 
  

60 
  

76 
  



Eilean Siar 
  

1 
  

0 
  



Falkirk 
  

3 
  

4 
  



Fife 
  

32 
  

54 
  



Glasgow City 
  

79 
  

99 
  



Highland 
  

33 
  

13 
  



Inverclyde 
  

12 
  

15 
  



Midlothian 
  

12 
  

18 
  



Moray 
  

8 
  

10 
  



North Ayrshire 
  

19 
  

13 
  



North Lanarkshire 
  

18 
  

16 
  



Orkney Islands 
  

0 
  

0 
  



Perth & Kinross 
  

9 
  

20 
  



Renfrewshire 
  

22 
  

16 
  



Scottish Borders 
  

17 
  

5 
  



Shetland Islands 
  

2 
  

2 
  



South Ayrshire 
  

13 
  

8 
  



South Lanarkshire 
  

15 
  

18 
  



Stirling 
  

2 
  

5 
  



West Dunbartonshire 
  

8 
  

9 
  



West Lothian 
  

15 
  

9

Rape

Mr Gil Paterson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what research has been carried out into the reasons for rape cases failing to reach court and what reasons were highlighted by any such research.

Iain Gray: Research completed in 1999 followed a sample of sex offence cases, which included complaints of rape, retrospectively through each stage of the criminal justice system from the first report of the incident to its outcome. The research found no overriding reason for rape complaints not being prosecuted. The main reason for rape complaints not proceeding from the police to the Procurator Fiscal was that no suspect had been found, while the main reason for not prosecuting was lack of evidence. In cases where a more minor sex offence was involved, this was sometimes not prosecuted as the public interest was seen to be better served by leaving the accused to the psychiatric or social work services.

Road Safety

Mr Michael McMahon (Hamilton North and Bellshill) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to allow local authorities to introduce speed restriction measures in built-up areas.

Sarah Boyack: Local authorities have power to set speed limits on local roads in built-up areas and elsewhere. In particular, local authorities have power to set 20 mph speed limits where they are considered appropriate. Other speed limits below 30 mph require the consent of the Scottish ministers. Scottish ministers have power to set speed limits on trunk roads in built-up areas and elsewhere.

  Local authorities also have power to construct road humps and traffic calming measures to control the speed of traffic on local roads.

Road Signs

Ms Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what representations it has received regarding the absence of signs directing visitors to the stadium at Hampden Park.

Sarah Boyack: The Scottish Football Association (SFA) wrote to the Scottish Executive asking if anything could be done to improve signing for Hampden Park from the road network. The SFA was provided with a copy of the Trunk Road and Motorway Tourist Signposting Policy, and advised to submit any application for signing through the trunk road Operating Company, Amey Highways. No application has yet been received from the SFA.

Road Signs

Ms Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what action it intends to take regarding the installation of signs directing visitors to the stadium at Hampden Park.

Sarah Boyack: I refer the member to the answer given to question S1W-19186.

  If an application for signing Hampden Stadium is submitted, it will be considered by the Scottish Executive.

Roads

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the First Minister whether the Scottish Executive has confidence in the ability of BEAR Scotland Ltd to fulfil its obligations in maintaining and keeping clear roads in the north of Scotland.

Mr Jim Wallace: All the private sector companies responsible for trunk road maintenance need to demonstrate that their arrangements meet the detailed and exacting requirements set out in their contracts.

  Contractors’ performance is reviewed and monitored continuously by the Performance Audit Group who report to the Scottish Executive. If the contractors fail to perform there are a range of sanctions that the Scottish Executive could take.

Roads

Colin Campbell (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how much of the estimated £250 million cost of the M74 Northern Extension will be paid directly to Her Majesty’s Treasury under the provisions of the Aggregate Tax and from what source this money will be found.

Sarah Boyack: Aggregate Tax will be paid as appropriate at the time of the construction of the road. We would expect the contractor responsible for constructing the M74 Northern Extension to design and construct it in a way that minimises the amount of Aggregate Tax due through the optimum use of recyclable materials.

  Any cost for the Aggregate Tax would be included in the tender price and would be shared between the Scottish Executive, Glasgow, South Lanarkshire and Renfrewshire Councils in accordance with the agreed funding arrangements.

Schools

Alex Neil (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1W-14085 by Mr Jack McConnell on 29 March 2001, whether it will report on the progress being made in the national evaluation of the New Community Schools Pilot Programme.

Mr Jack McConnell: As indicated in the reply of 29 March 2001, the three-year national evaluation started in April 2000. The evaluation team has met with the New Community Schools Ministerial Steering Group and with Scottish Executive officials on a number of occasions to report on progress with the early information collection and analysis stages of the evaluation. A detailed Interim Report is expected by the middle of 2002 with the final report being submitted in 2003.

Science

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the proposal in A Science Strategy for Scotland to work with the Royal Society of Edinburgh to set up a Scottish Science Advisory Committee to advise on strategic scientific issues, how many employees of new universities are members of the Royal Society of Edinburgh.

Ms Wendy Alexander: The Scottish Science Advisory Committee will have a broadly based membership and will not be restricted to members of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. Membership of the Royal Society of Edinburgh is a matter for that body.

Science

Irene McGugan (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to A Science Strategy for Scotland , what plans it has, in partnership with Her Majesty’s Government, to seek funding from Europe and to take advantage of regional aid schemes in the same way that Greece, Spain and Ireland have.

Ms Wendy Alexander: The Scottish Executive is working with the Enterprise Networks to increase the uptake of those European funding streams which aim to encourage research and development. The Executive will be working over the next six months with the UK Office of Science and Technology on FP6, the new framework for European aid for Research and Development. Scotland is well placed to take advantage of the funding streams presented by FP6, as it has a proven track record of excellence in many of the priority areas being put forward by the UK Government.

Science

Brian Adam (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it has any plans to establish a Scientific Services Advisory Group.

Ms Wendy Alexander: A Science Strategy for Scotland , published by the Scottish Executive on 27 August 2001, ( http://www.scotland.gov.uk/library3/education/ssfs-00.asp ), contained a commitment to establish an independent Scottish Science Advisory Committee under the auspices of the Royal Society of Edinburgh.

Social Inclusion

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to implement the recommendations in the report Early Endowment by the Scottish Council Foundation .

Jackie Baillie: We are examining the recommendations in this report, supported by two of our Social Inclusion Partnerships, which relate to services for pregnant women and infants.

Student Finance

Pauline McNeill (Glasgow Kelvin) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive, further to the answer to question S1O-3935 by Mr Alasdair Morrison on 25 October 2001, whether the system of additional support to students currently arranged through access and hardship funds can be simplified and brought within the new arrangements for student financial support.

Ms Wendy Alexander: Hardship funds, formerly known as access funds, are an integral part of the new support arrangements for further and higher education students. These funds are administered by individual colleges and universities under guidance provided by the Student Awards Agency for Scotland.

Teachers

Brian Adam (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether any representations have been received on proposed changes to the starting salary for mature graduates beginning a new teaching career.

Mr Jack McConnell: We have received a number of representations from concerned individuals, and I have met with a number of students who would be affected by the proposed changes. I have also received a letter from the Deans of the Faculties of Education, and we have been in dialogue with the National Union of Students.

  I am convinced that the improvements we are implementing through the Agreement "A Teaching Profession for the 21st Century" are of significant benefit to probationer teachers and the profession, both now and in the long-term. However, I am aware of the concerns raised by those mature students studying now, and in particular that they have budgeted for their training under certain expectations and assumptions. With our partners in CoSLA and the teacher organisations we will give the issues they have raised our full consideration.

Waste Management

Fiona McLeod (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what funding it intends to make available to local authorities for the implementation of Area Waste Plans beyond 2004.

Fiona McLeod (West of Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the £50.4 million allocated to the Strategic Waste Fund will be the only provision available to help local authorities implement Area Waste Plans.

Rhona Brankin: This is a matter to be considered in future spending reviews.